Doctor: Monkey stolen from Fla. zoo in good health upon return

Wednesday

Doctor G opened the door to a room at the Palm Beach, Fla., Zoo animal hospital on Wednesday and welcomed in Francisco Maldonado and Steven DePetro, the two police detectives she called her heroes.

Inside, sitting calmly in a large cage, was Kali, the tiny 12-year-old rare Goeldi’s monkey whose abduction Monday had drawn national attention.

Sometime before midnight, West Palm Beach police walked in with Kali in a small cage; dirty and dehydrated but unharmed and apparently unshaken by her ordeal, which began early Monday when someone cut the mesh around her habitat.

The zoo is deferring all questions about the abduction to police, who would say at midday Wednesday only that the animal was recovered somewhere in Palm Beach County.

They would not identify the person or persons they questioned or say whether anyone had been charged. They also would not say how they were led to the animal or what they believe the abductor or adbductors intended. A spokesman said he hoped to reveal more details later Wednesday.

The zoo and Crime Stoppers of Palm Beach County offered a combined $6,000 reward for information leading to her return amid fears the monkey, which sells for nearly $10,000 on the black market, was stolen as part of a financial crime.

Detectives called late Tuesday to say they had Kali, and almost immediately came to the zoo, arriving just before midnight. Naki Carter, the zoo’s spokeswoman, said getting that call “was emotional. There was a sigh of relief. And when we had her. ... ”

On arrival, Doctor G said, Kali “looked pretty good” considering her mystery journey. She drank a lot of water, a sign she was dehydrated, then ate some grapes and had an uneventful night.

On Wednesday morning, Dumonceaux said, everything appeared normal.

At midday, as the monkey calmly stared through metal bars at reporters and photographers, Doctor G said Kali would be kept in quarantine for several days to make sure she hadn’t picked up anything on the outside, and only then would she be reunited with her mate, Quito.

The zoo had said the animal is on a special diet and needs anti-inflammatory medication every day. But Doctor G said Wednesday it wasn’t critical to give her the medication right away and they wanted to wait until she stabilized.

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